At the end of Paul's first visit to Ephesus, Demetrius became worried about his job of making silver statues of the Greek goddess Artemis (=Roman's Diana). Paul was hurting his business by convincing people that the statues were not real gods at all. So Demetrius the silversmith started a riot. The people shouted, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" for about two hours. Fearing for his safety, the disciples would not let Paul meet the mob. (Acts 19: 23-41)

This coin, made in Ephesus, pictures Augustus (27 B.C.-14 A.D.) on one side and the statue of Artemis on the other.
[SGI 57]

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